NEWARK, NJ – Freeholder Blonnie R. Watson of Newark and Freeholder Patricia Sebold of Livingston were re-elected President and Vice President, respectively, of the Essex County Board of Chosen Freeholders during the Board’s Annual Reorganization Meeting held on Wednesday at the Hall of Records. They were re-elected unanimously.

Watson was nominated by Freeholder Brendan Gill of Montclair, Freeholder Rufus Johnson of Newark and Freeholder Leonard Luciano of West Caldwell, while Freeholder Vice President Sebold was nominated by Freeholder Carol Clark of East Orange, Freeholder D. Bilal Beasley of Irvington and Freeholder Gerald R. Owens of South Orange. Watson and Sebold, both re-elected unanimously, were sworn-in by Essex County Surrogate Theodore N. Stephens, II.

“It is a great honor and privilege to be elected to serve as Vice President this year, and to work alongside our outstanding President, Blonnie Watson,” said Sebold. She went on to say that the freeholders were lucky to work with an excellent county executive, Joseph DiVinenzo, by adding, “Putting Essex County First is his motto, and we all work together to make that a reality, improving the lives of all the residents of our county, and I am happy to be a part of that process as an elected official.”

Sebold explained that since the County Executive took office in 2003, “more has been accomplished than in any other administration in Essex County’s history, and as he seeks his fourth term, I am pleased to work along with him as Essex County becomes even better.”

Sebold spoke with pride of her role in the improvements in all 22 county parks as a member of the Open Space Trust Fund Advisory Board, and of the county’s excellent correctional facility, juvenile detention center, hospital center, new government complex, excellent vocational school system, upgraded South Mountain Recreational Complex, and especially of Turtle Back Zoo, which she pointed out was rated New Jersey’s No. 1 zoo by New Jersey Monthly Magazine.

“We are receiving awards and recognitions in many areas,” she said, “and I am proud to be a part of a model government.”

She also remarked that the county now has financial stability, and that since the current county executive was sworn into office in 2003, the county’s bond rating has improved from “junk” status to AA2, “the highest status we have ever achieved.”

She concluded her remarks saying, “Our mission is to work as hard as possible to ‘Put Essex County First,’ and as vice president I will work as hard as I can to do what is in the best interests of all the people of this great county, and to work alongside Freeholder President Watson and County Executive DiVincenzo to make Essex County even better.”

Freeholder Vice President Sebold has been an At-Large member of the Freeholder Board since April 1993, having been elected to seven consecutive terms. She is currently serving as Vice President for the third consecutive year, a position she also held on five earlier occasions in 1996 and 2003-06. Freeholder Sebold taught English at West Orange High School from 1970 until her retirement in 2001, served on the Essex County Vocational Schools Board of Education, as a Commissioner on the Essex County Board of Elections, and has been chairperson of the Livingston Democratic Municipal Committee since 1976. She is a member of the League of Women Voters, the Sierra Club and the Boards of Trustees of the United Jewish Communities of MetroWest and the Jewish Community Housing Corporation.

Freeholder President Watson began her remarks by expressing her gratitude to her freeholder colleagues saying, “There are no adequate words to express how appreciative I am to have the privilege and honor to lead this esteemed body for another year. I am mindful of the obligations this office and leadership carries, and I commit to you that I am prepared and able and will never take the responsibilities of being a freeholder and president of this board for granted.”

She added, “Now, more than ever, we must meet the challenges and expectations of our constituents, who expect and are due strong leadership that yields progress and is fiscally accountable for how tax dollars are spent and services are rendered.”

Addressing county residents directly, she said, “I pledge to you that I will continue to provide leadership founded on integrity, accountability and accessibility. I commit to be unbending when these important principles are at stake, yet open-minded and caring with the everyday problems of Essex County residents.”

She also spoke with pride about all that has been accomplished during her tenure as president, and specifically called attention to the recent posting of the Essex County Code on the freeholder board’s website saying, “This is yet another way of making county government transparent and available to the people we serve.”

She also thanked the board’s staff for their hard work and professionalism, as well as her family and Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo for their support. She concluded her remarks by offering the following quote: “Instead of living in the shadows of yesterday, walk in the light of today and the hope of tomorrow.”

Freeholder President Watson has been an At-Large member of the Essex County Board of Freeholders since 1996, having been elected to six consecutive 3-year terms, and will begin her eighth consecutive year as the Board’s President. Prior to beginning her first term as President in 2007, she served as Vice President of the Board from 1998-2002. She serves as President of the High Park Gardens Cooperative Corporation in Newark and is a former Board member of the National Association of Housing Cooperatives. She is also a housing consultant, a retired U. S. Postal Service executive, former Commissioner on the Newark Zoning Board of Adjustment and former Essex County Democratic County Committee Chair for Newark’s Central Ward. She is a member of the National Congress of Black Women and the Newark Housing Authority’s Dr. MLK Blvd. Stakeholders Committee. She has received numerous awards and recognition for her public and community service and has been named twice in the Congressional Record by Congressmen Peter Rodino and Albio Sires.

The program’s opening and closing prayers were offered by Assistant Pastor Glenn Hurt of Unity Freedom Baptist Church in Newark, and the program included congratulatory remarks by Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr.

Recent Articles Nearby

WEST ORANGE, NJ — The Shabbat House, Daughters of Israel’s brand new project, is the first and only one of its kind in the world. The house, recently completed on 664 Eagle Rock Avenue in West Orange, unites all Jews to celebrate and enjoy Shabbat together.

All are invited to participate in its Dedication Event (Chanukat Habayit) on Thursday, Dec. 29, the third light of ...

SHORT HILLS, NJ — The teens involved in Lancers Against Cancer at Livingston High School recently decided to focus their fundraising efforts toward Comfort Project 360, an organization that's sole purpose is to provide comfort and support for patients undergoing chemotherapy, radiation and infusions at the Saint Barnabas Cancer Centers.

LIVINGSTON, NJ — The Livingston Advisory Committee for Disabilities (LACD) and Senior, Youth & Leisure Services (SYLS) invite residents with special needs and their families to their free annual holiday party on Saturday.

From 10 a.m. to noon at the Livingston Senior Community Center at 204 Hillside Ave., LACD and SYLS will host a celebration complete with food, beverages, DJ music ...

ROSELAND, NJ — A local litigation and personal-injury attorney recently authored a book written primarily for trial lawyers called “The Domino Theory,” which provides a step-by-step framework for how to demonstrate any case to a jury, from discovery through closing arguments.

Although Edward Capozzi, a partner at Brach Eichler LLC of Roseland, wrote the book ...

LIVINGSTON, NJ — Livingston Township Council addressed issues concerning the development of Madonna Field, and making sure that the upkeep of the Livingston High School fields is handled correctly, at its meeting Monday.

The council questioned consultant John Jahr about the issue due to a recent article in The Star-Ledger about an investigation into FieldTurf’s use of ...

NEWARK, NJ - Authorities announced Tuesday that they have arrested Khalil Wheeler-Weaver, 20, of Orange, who is suspected of the murder of Sarah Butler, according to Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn Murray and Montclair Police Chief Todd Conforti.

Butler, a 20-year-old Montclair resident reported missing on Nov. 23, was found dead on Dec. 1 in Eagle ...

EAST HANOVER, NJ — A handful of students with disabilities from Livingston’s CPNJ Horizon High School were among more than 100 students from 11 schools that recently visited Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation (NPC) for National Disability Mentoring Day—a day of career exploration for students with special needs.

LIVINGSTON, NJ – The Owner/Directors of Meadowbrook County Day Camp Dan Millman and George Stein are launching a NJ Pizza Road Tour to meet prospective families and visit with former and current camp families. The first stop on the tour is Dec. 14 from 5 to 7 p.m. at Anthony Francos, 489 S Livingston Ave., in Livingston.

NEWARK, NJ - Authorities announced Tuesday that they have arrested Khalil Wheeler-Weaver, 20, of Orange, who is suspected of the murder of Sarah Butler, according to Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn Murray and Montclair Police Chief Todd Conforti.

Butler, a 20-year-old Montclair resident reported missing on Nov. 23, was found dead on Dec. 1 in Eagle ...

After years of changing his course, living in New Jersey, Boston, Brooklyn, and Charleston, all while singing in small local bars, at open mic nights, and working as a bartender to make ends meet, Randolph’s Brendan Fletcher always ...

LIVINGSTON, NJ — Maestro Anthony LaGruth and the Livingston Symphony Orchestra invites areas to join them on Saturday, Dec. 17 at 7:30 p.m. for their Winter Concert at the Livingston High School Auditorium.

The second performance in the orchestra’s 2016-2017 season, the winter concert includes works from venerated composers such as Beethoven, Dvorak, and Ravel, and will feature ...

Recently, the owners of Meadowbrook Country Day Camp, Dan Milman and George Stein, took part in a fun Question and Answer session. Below are the questions and their responses. To learn more about Milman, Stein and Meadowbrook, click here to read a recent article that ran on TApinto.net.

And here and here and here. Initial these five boxes. Then sign right here and over here stating that you understand that you are signing something you haven’t read. And on the last page please sign and date this disclaimer stating that you are fully responsible for signing and dating this document even if you ...

Any armchair theoretical physicist knows that Stephen Hawking has pursued a lifelong quest to come up with a Theory of Everything. This all-encompassing theory would tie together general relativity (large scale and high mass galaxies, stars, etc), quantum theory (quantum mechanics, quarks, atoms, subatomic particles), and Newtonian physics (gravity on small bodies, gas laws, electromagnetism) to ...